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Friday, May 14, 2010
Hispanic population grows on Milwaukee's south side
Hispanic population grows on Milwaukee's south side
The Business Journal of Milwaukee - by Pete Millard
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The fastest-growing neighborhoods in the city of Milwaukee are those with the greatest concentration of Hispanic residents.
While the city's overall population is shrinking, Milwaukee's near south side population expanded by 23 percent in some areas along Mitchell Street, Lincoln Avenue and National Avenue, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2000 survey.
Overall, there are now 72,000 Hispanic residents in Milwaukee, 12 percent of the city's 596,974 people. The final Census count for Hispanic residents was 17 percent higher than the 1999 estimate of 60,000.
"I think the Census numbers will be a wake-up call for politicians and businesses," said Walter Sava, executive director of the United Community Center (UCC) on the south side. "There is a growing market on Milwaukee's south side that has been ignored in the past. And the reality is if the Census counts 72,000 people, there are probably another 8,000 who went uncounted."
While the Census Bureau's income and other demographic data on Milwaukee will not be available until early 2002, Sava has surveyed hundreds of south side residents and has recorded dramatic increases in purchasing power among local Hispanics during the 1990s.
In 1997, a mere 4 percent of Hispanics in Sava's UCC service territory had incomes between $20,000 and $30,000. Sava's 2001 survey reveals that 27 percent of the city's Hispanic population earn more than $20,000.
At the same time, Sava said, there was a dramatic drop in the number of residents who earned less than $15,000. By 2001, the number of people who earned less than $15,000 went from 80 percent to 35 percent, he said.
"The strong economy has been good for Latinos," Sava said.
Sava was surprised by the home ownership rates and education levels of Hispanics. Home ownership rates among those in the neighborhood grew to 44 percent from 30 percent four years earlier.
Sava attributes some of the increase in home ownership to the city's redevelopment efforts administered by UCC. In the middle 1990s, UCC invested $2.7 million in the Walker's Square neighborhood. By 1997, residential tax assessments in the neighborhood had increased 12 percent, Sava said.
The number of local Hispanics who completed high school increased from 20 percent in 1997 to 35 percent in 2001, Sava said.
However, the education level for Hispanics, while increasing, is still a concern for Sava and other Hispanic community leaders.
"It should be a shock to politicians to learn that almost two-thirds of Hispanics have only a middle school education," Sava said. "We have an undereducated community here in Milwaukee, and it is a challenge for kids and parents. Many times, parents don't get involved in their kids' education because they don't how."
Maria Monreal-Cameron, president and chief executive officer of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin, said the Latino population will continue to grow in coming years because the median age of the Hispanic community is 22.5.
The local Hispanic community elected its first Wisconsin Assembly representative in 1998 when Rep. Pedro Colon (D-Milwaukee) took office. In 2000, Angel Sanchez became the city's first Hispanic Common Council member.
Other findings in the 2001 UCC survey show that 52 percent of the area's Hispanics speak both English and Spanish; and 63 percent of the community's children live with both parents.
"Growth in the community is going to change a lot of perceptions," Monreal-Cameron said. "We are demonstrating (Hispanics) are a political force to be reckoned with."
Read more: Hispanic population grows on Milwaukee's south side - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:
The Business Journal of Milwaukee - by Pete Millard
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Email address of friend (insert comma between multiple addresses):
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The fastest-growing neighborhoods in the city of Milwaukee are those with the greatest concentration of Hispanic residents.
While the city's overall population is shrinking, Milwaukee's near south side population expanded by 23 percent in some areas along Mitchell Street, Lincoln Avenue and National Avenue, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2000 survey.
Overall, there are now 72,000 Hispanic residents in Milwaukee, 12 percent of the city's 596,974 people. The final Census count for Hispanic residents was 17 percent higher than the 1999 estimate of 60,000.
"I think the Census numbers will be a wake-up call for politicians and businesses," said Walter Sava, executive director of the United Community Center (UCC) on the south side. "There is a growing market on Milwaukee's south side that has been ignored in the past. And the reality is if the Census counts 72,000 people, there are probably another 8,000 who went uncounted."
While the Census Bureau's income and other demographic data on Milwaukee will not be available until early 2002, Sava has surveyed hundreds of south side residents and has recorded dramatic increases in purchasing power among local Hispanics during the 1990s.
In 1997, a mere 4 percent of Hispanics in Sava's UCC service territory had incomes between $20,000 and $30,000. Sava's 2001 survey reveals that 27 percent of the city's Hispanic population earn more than $20,000.
At the same time, Sava said, there was a dramatic drop in the number of residents who earned less than $15,000. By 2001, the number of people who earned less than $15,000 went from 80 percent to 35 percent, he said.
"The strong economy has been good for Latinos," Sava said.
Sava was surprised by the home ownership rates and education levels of Hispanics. Home ownership rates among those in the neighborhood grew to 44 percent from 30 percent four years earlier.
Sava attributes some of the increase in home ownership to the city's redevelopment efforts administered by UCC. In the middle 1990s, UCC invested $2.7 million in the Walker's Square neighborhood. By 1997, residential tax assessments in the neighborhood had increased 12 percent, Sava said.
The number of local Hispanics who completed high school increased from 20 percent in 1997 to 35 percent in 2001, Sava said.
However, the education level for Hispanics, while increasing, is still a concern for Sava and other Hispanic community leaders.
"It should be a shock to politicians to learn that almost two-thirds of Hispanics have only a middle school education," Sava said. "We have an undereducated community here in Milwaukee, and it is a challenge for kids and parents. Many times, parents don't get involved in their kids' education because they don't how."
Maria Monreal-Cameron, president and chief executive officer of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin, said the Latino population will continue to grow in coming years because the median age of the Hispanic community is 22.5.
The local Hispanic community elected its first Wisconsin Assembly representative in 1998 when Rep. Pedro Colon (D-Milwaukee) took office. In 2000, Angel Sanchez became the city's first Hispanic Common Council member.
Other findings in the 2001 UCC survey show that 52 percent of the area's Hispanics speak both English and Spanish; and 63 percent of the community's children live with both parents.
"Growth in the community is going to change a lot of perceptions," Monreal-Cameron said. "We are demonstrating (Hispanics) are a political force to be reckoned with."
Read more: Hispanic population grows on Milwaukee's south side - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:
journal entry 3
Working up at the school continues to be a uphill battle for me. As previously stated, young children can be difficult for me to communicate with, but the school is opening my eyes to new forms of interaction. I was excited to work with two young male students today because of the material I was going to get to tutor them with. I got the opportunity to help them with their social studies homework, and me being a history major, the material they were learning was right up my alley. The homework was focused around the impact of the underground railroad here in Wisconsin. The students were asked to draw a representation of not only the underground railroad but what it stood for as well. When one student began to draw a railroad track, I quickly intervened and described to him that their was no real life railroad and that it was simply a metaphoric expression. I went on to make the analogy that if he were to stay at all of his friends houses to feel safe,on his way back to his own home, that this would be considered a similar experience. Each friends house represented a safe haven until he got home or to his final destination. It was a great feeling would I could see on the young boys face, that he had finally understood what the underground railroad truly represented. This small moment of success for me was self gratifying and gave me courage to continue to work through my interaction problems with that of the younger generation. I hope to in the future become a professor of History, and if I can continue to see my teaching make an impact on the younger generation, than that is all I can hope for in my lifetime.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Artist statement
In my final project, I wanted to expose the environmental realities children face on the South Side of Milwaukee. Growing up in the inner city can be a difficult task, but one can always make the best of the situation they face. I myself didn't grow up in the inner city, but I did face certain harsh realities that most children never come into conflict with. I'm an African American and as a result, society views me as not fitting the "norm" or being of Caucasian descent. This has never bothered me, but I have always wondered what it would be like to still be a minority, just of a different race. The South side of Milwaukee is predominately Hispanic, so I wanted my project to focus on just that issue. This class is about multiculturalism, so I felt it necessary to focus on the Hispanic community and how they interact with one another. I think that the people of Milwaukee feel mistakenly unwelcome on the South side of Milwaukee. This is a tragedy because it could not be further from the truth. There are no social barriers that prevent someone who isn't Hispanic from crossing over the river and interacting with community, yet I believe many within our society believe that there is. In my project I wanted to expose the good and bad aspects the South side holds. I had no trouble collecting pictures and data that were reflective of the South Side, but I did run into a few problems along the way. My main problem was conducting an oral interview from just a local community member. This was due primarly to language barrier that can tend to accompany the South Side. Most of the people I tried to conduct a interview with were friendly, but unhelpful in regards to my project. I did however manage to talk with a local bar owner on National Ave. He went on to tell me that, "it is sad that we as a society are still racially divided, but the latino community is strong in it's unity." He then said, "Although we are segregated from other nieghborhoods, hispanics on the South Side can rely on one another in ways that other communities can not or simply do not." After speaking with this man, I knew that my project would focus on segregation but also the unity that accompanies it's destructive ways. It is a way of looking at the situation with the "glass half full" but sometimes thinking positive can go a long way. Hopefully in the future, these ideas of unity can spread across the entire city instead of just one sector of it.
journal entry 2
Working with the students at the boys and girls club has been a eye opening experience for me. Previous to working up at the school, I have always felt that I didn't get along with younger kids age 3-12. Now that I have help tutor 4th and 5th graders, my level of appreciation for the younger generation has grown tremendously. I have come to realize that with a little guidance, young boys and girls do process the proper skills to educate themselves on a daily basis. At first, I was extremly frustrated at the level of concentration these students held, but with a little reassurance, most of the pupils I taught realized that hard work and dedication to studies can go a long way in this world. The last session I had at the school I tutored a young boy named Brian. We chated about sports and particular soccer, but he then went on to ask me a question about ancestory. He asked me if the Native Americans were still around today. Me being a history major, I wanted to explain to him the long history of invasion and exploitation at the hands of the European settlers. However, realizing that he was to young to comprehend the confrontational history of Native Americans in this country, I simply explained to him that Native Americans have been here long before any white man(anglo-saxon) set foot on American soil. We talked some more about the history of Native Americans, and in doing so, I realized that I was enjoying educating this 12 year old on the history of this country. I guess in a way the students at the boys and girls club were slowly growing on me, and as a result, my sevice learning experience was enhancing my ability to interact with the younger generation in a productive manner.
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